Lamb Hotpot
I absolutely adore lamb, it's probably one of my favourite meats. I often use leg meat, shoulder, or mince but until recently had never used neck. I nearly always see it in the reduced aisles at supermarkets too. Lamb neck isn't cheap, but it is super flavourful! The packs I bought (which contain around four neck rings - bone in), cost around £3.00, so about £9.00 to serve a meal for four! I bought mine for £4.00 for 3 packs, so well worth keeping an eye out for reductions.
I used lamb neck with the bone in because it has far more flavour, than without, although neck fillet does work. I've adapted the well known Lancashire Hotpot recipe, I find that the recipes are often over complex and don't let the lamb shine through and I'm not all that keen on the addition of kidneys. I love this recipe because it has that 'comfort food' taste, but the gravy is light and isn't overly heavy.
Ingredients
I absolutely adore lamb, it's probably one of my favourite meats. I often use leg meat, shoulder, or mince but until recently had never used neck. I nearly always see it in the reduced aisles at supermarkets too. Lamb neck isn't cheap, but it is super flavourful! The packs I bought (which contain around four neck rings - bone in), cost around £3.00, so about £9.00 to serve a meal for four! I bought mine for £4.00 for 3 packs, so well worth keeping an eye out for reductions.
I used lamb neck with the bone in because it has far more flavour, than without, although neck fillet does work. I've adapted the well known Lancashire Hotpot recipe, I find that the recipes are often over complex and don't let the lamb shine through and I'm not all that keen on the addition of kidneys. I love this recipe because it has that 'comfort food' taste, but the gravy is light and isn't overly heavy.
Ingredients
- 12 lamb neck rings (bone in)
- 4 carrots (topped and tailed and cut in large chunks, skin on)
- 1 onion (peeled and halved)
- 3 garlic cloves (peeled)
- 2 x vegetable stock pots
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 4 medium-large Maris Piper potatoes (peeled and sliced to 3mm thickness)
- 50g butter, melted
Method
- Preheat the oven to 190c/170 fan/ gas mark 5.
- Brown the lamb rings in a frying pan, on a medium heat, for 2-3 minutes each side.
- Place the lamb, carrots, onion, garlic, salt and pepper and stock pots in a deep oven tray.
- Cover the lamb with boiling water, so the top of the meat is covered, cover the tray with tin foil and place the tray in the oven for 2 hours.
- Remove from the oven, take the lamb neck rings out and leave to cool down slightly (cool enough to handle).
- Pull the meat from the bones and put in an oven proof dish (discarding the bones).
- Sieve the leftover cooking liquid, discarding the onion and garlic, but keeping the carrots, into the oven-proof dish with the lamb.
- Place your potatoes on the top, layering them so that the meat filling is covered and then brush the tops of the potatoes with the melted butter.
- Place back in the oven, for 45 minutes, or until the potatoes have softened and browned on top.
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| Layered potatoes after cooking. |
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| The finished product... |
Hints, tips, and techniques
- A mandolin slicer (where you can set the thickness) will allow for evenly sliced potatoes
- Keep the bones and boil for stock!
- Leave the skin on your carrots for stews, casseroles, hotpots, etc as this will help thicken the cooking liquid.
- The 'gravy' for this should resemble the thickness of a broth but if you prefer is thicker, use some cornflour.